The Time for Forgiveness
by Independent-Fics
Summary: "You both almost got killed tonight because you didn't have each other's backs!" One shot based off of this quote from the season 4 trailer. Oliver goes to talk to Lyla about what happened all those months ago. Part of my The Time For Forgiveness (And Other Arrow Season 4 Works) collection.


_There are spoilers but only from literally one line from the trailer so don't worry if you've seen it... But seriously if you haven't dude get your priorities straightened out then come back and read this. For laurabelle2930 or Ms. Laurabella here on FF for all her help and kind words. Read her stories. They're amazing._

 _Hope you enjoy!_

 _(2,500+ words)_

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" _ **You both almost got killed tonight because you didn't have each other's backs!"**_

Oliver sighs as he stands outside the door, hands stuffed in his pockets and a look of concentration on his face.

After standing there for longer than was decently necessary he finally gives in and leans forward with his hand raised as he knocks on the door. A part of him is hoping no one heard but another part, the more logical side, knows that with her skills there was no doubt that she hadn't heard.

There was a shuffle behind the door and the click of the locks and then the door opened to reveal one Lyla Diggle.

Her eyebrows rose at his full appearance, not surprised, as he had no doubt she looked through the peephole first, but he must be quite a site. He imagined as his hair, grown slightly longer throughout the road trip, was ruffled because he had run his fingers through it constantly on the drive over here. And his foot was resisting the nervous urge to tap and his fingers that weren't buried in his pocket looked itching for an arrow, but that definitely wasn't needed or wanted in this situation.

He was out of his mind with nerves and he thinks one of the only other times he remembers feeling this was when he asked Felicity out on their first date. And he quickly shut that thought process down because he also recalled how that ended and didn't want anything to ruin this now either.

Opening the door a bit wider Lyla stepped forward and gave him a small smile and Oliver held back his shocked look because she was actually smiling. At him. Even after what he did.

"Oliver, hi how are things?"

Oliver knew he must look even more ridiculous now as his mouth opened and closed slightly, resembling a fish, as he tried to come up with words to say as he hadn't even imagined this was how this confrontation would start.

He expected probably anger, a mother's wrath, or at least the door slammed back in his face, if even opened at all.

"Umm hey I just came to check up on things. Well I mean I've heard some things, actually not much, from Diggle considering, uh, but how are you?"

Oliver wanted to slap himself as he caught a bad case of Felicity Babble as he hadn't even gotten to the real reason he was here.

Shaking his head at himself he cleared his throat and started again before Lyla could even form words as a response.

"What I really came here for is to apologize. For, well, everything really. Diggle and I have been tense to say the least with each other lately and I know that's my fault because I can't imagine what I put you through all those months ago and what I put Dig through. He has and always will be a brother to me and after what I did to him that's probably never ever going to be something we easily move past. But after the rough mission the other day we both got hit with Felicity's loud voice and I know now that I never truly apologized to you. I've just been trying to mend my relationship with Dig."

Oliver paused in his speech to take a breath, partially to calm himself and partially in frustration at his friend who was once a brother in arms and is now as distant as the day he met him.

"And I also know that he went grocery shopping earlier and so now I have the chance to actually talk to you without risking another one of his right hooks," he mumbled out to her huffing out a small chuckle as he looked at his shoes.

"So what I wanted to say was I am. Sorry that is. I'm sorry for having you kidnapped by the league of assassins and well we also kind of used you and traded your life for Nyssa's and," Oliver sighed cutting off a jittery ramble and continued. "Everything that happened that day Lyla I truly regret and you deserved none of that so I'm truly sorry."

Oliver had resumed eye contact with her as he finished off his speech and stood on edge for a few moments waiting to see how Lyla would react, or if she would react at all.

After a few moments of nothing Oliver cleared his throat and turned to leave with a hasty goodbye when she finally spoke.

"If I know one thing about John it's that he can hold a grudge. Especially when it comes to those he cares about but I know he still cares about you."

Oliver opened his mouth to object but her hand shot up, silencing him along with a look that asked him to let her finish.

"He just won't ever admit it because he also has his pride. I know he's still upset about it but these past few months of space have been good, I feel, for the both of you. Occasionally John and I talk about it and he still gets angry sometimes but we both know it's over. Well at least I do." Lyla looked off in her head for a moment with a small smile, Oliver guessed, thinking about Dig's stubborn ways.

Nodding to herself she looks back to him again with a soft smile. "I forgive you if that's what you're looking for. John probably doesn't but he's coming around I hope. I get it. I may not agree with it but no one just agrees with the League of Assassins and I know if John and my roles were reversed I would be feeling the same way John is now. I'd definitely despise you if you kidnapped my husband brainwashed or not. But you do know who I work for right? I wouldn't be surprised if Waller pulled the same stunt one day. She probably already has once."

They both chucked, laughing at Amanda Waller's expense, but they silently agreed they knew what she was really capable of.

"But," Lyla's tone turning softer yet more serious at the same time, getting back on subject, "I get it so I forgive you. We're all still alive and in that war we made it out on top and that's the best thing I could ask for in the end."

Oliver smiled nodding to her but before he could express his gratitude he heard a shuffle behind Lyla and the small pitter-patter of footsteps before a garbled version of "momma" and there was baby Sara tumbling at the feet of her mother, laughing at her adventure, making it to the front door all on her own.

Oliver smiled down at her and she gave him a toothy grin back and a giggle and he thought back to the day she was born and how fast she's grown from then.

He looked to Lyla silently asking permission and she smiled to him, stepping out of the way as Sara half walked, half crawled to Oliver's now crouched form as he bent to meet her.

She kept grabbing on to his hands and his shirt sleeves anything she could reach as she pulled herself up into a standing position in front of his face, giggling all the while as she balanced herself using Oliver's strong forearms, ensuring she wouldn't fall.

Oliver watched her in awe as she touched his eyebrows, his eyes, his nose, her eyes lighting up in fascination as he went as low as he could to accommodate her exploration. She giggled when he wiggled his nose or eyebrows and he loved to hear her laugh and babble as he ticked her sides. He couldn't help smiling back at her when she grinned at him, showing him her growing teeth, and he thought about how she was the perfect blend of Lyla and John and couldn't help imaging again, like countless times before, what a son or daughter of him and Felicity would look like, hopefully one day in the future, the child being the perfect blend of him and her. Her and her light.

"What are you doing here?"

Oliver was snapped out of his thoughts as Sara let go of his arms, plopping on to her bottom and turning at the sound of her father's voice in the hallway, instinctively reaching for him and giggling as she seemed to be trying to say daddy but it just came out as an adorable gurgle mixed with her musical laugh.

Dig reached forward as his daughter crawled toward him and picked her up, while all the grocery bags were settled on one bowling ball sized arm. Sara grabbed hold of her father's shirt, sighing softly in contentment in his arms and rested her head in the crook of his neck closing her eyes. Oliver stood up to face Diggle and backed up a step out from in front of the door yet Diggle didn't move to go through it so they stood at a stalemate out in the hallway.

Lyla sighed to herself at their tension and simply said, "Johnny."

Diggle didn't glance at her, keeping his cold yet closed off gaze on Oliver, but continued their usual banter of, "You only call me that when you want something."

Lyla, with a ghost of a smile said, "Oliver just came to talk about a few things. We both talked and it was fine."

"Oh? And what did you talk about?" Diggle was giving Oliver no quarter as his words had a harsh edge to them, warning Oliver to watch what he says now in the presence of his home.

"John," Lyla said his name calmly yet harshly getting Dig to break eye contact with Oliver and look to her. "He came to talk about what happened months ago since he seemed to be having trouble getting to you. He took the opportunity while you were out for us to have a conversation. He apologized and John, I forgive him for what happened."

Lyla had softened her words in the end but to no avail as Diggle just gave a non-committal grunt and pushed past them both into the apartment. Lyla and Oliver watched as he put the groceries away, all while holding Sara securely in his arms, never once waking her, before closing himself in her nursery.

Oliver was glad because that all could have gone worse.

"Thank you Oliver, for coming and talking to me. I'm glad you did and again I understand why you did what you did. I'll see if I can talk to him."

Oliver nodded to her thanking her and turned to leave. Lyla watched Oliver walk down the hallway, out of site before looking towards the nursery and sighing.

 _She would talk to him_ , she thought to herself as she shut the front door.

* * *

John stood over his daughters crib as she breathed calmly in her sleep, only moving every so often, her little hands clenched into fists on her tiny chest.

He slowly ran his fingers over her face softly, thinking, contemplating what went on in the hallway.

He heard the door behind him open, the noise sounding as a mere whisper throughout the room and he knew it could only be one person. His wife, Lyla came to lean against the crib beside him, gently petting Sara's little feet as they did little kicks in her slumber.

"You know he meant it right?"

"Lyla I thought we agreed we wouldn't talk about it anymore," John grumbled.

"I don't ever remember agreeing to anything of the sort Johnny." Dig turned to her and saw her eyebrows were raised to him with her signature don't mess with me look and John sighed knowing she was right.

"Fine you only agreed to drop it then but can we agree to drop it now too?"

Lyla huffed crossing her arms, one elbow supported by the crib rail as she was turned to face him. "No John you can't keep avoiding this, avoiding Oliver. He's been trying to mend fences John and it's like you're the landlord complaining about property lines or something."

"What?" John was now utterly confused because he had never heard his wife make an analogy like that one.

"You know what I mean. But what I'm trying to say is that I work with A.R.G.U.S. John and I've been through worse. Getting kidnapped by Oliver didn't scare me."

John attempted to protest, saying it was the _League of Assassins_ not just Oliver but she cut him off with a glare.

"John I thought it wouldn't matter but it may help. Oliver wasn't even there. It was just a few assassins who came and grabbed me, none of whom were Oliver, and one stayed behind to watch Sara. Oliver wasn't even among them he was watching me when I woke up though in the assassin's compound."

"What," Diggle started but Lyla cut him off again.

"Think John. This was Ra's al Ghul he could have taken Oliver at any time yet instead he decided to force Oliver into making the decision himself. And he did that by going after Thea but he could have gone after any of us! They probably already knew we were here all they had to do was show up and surprised me."

"Oliver still gave that order Lyla," Dig said coldly.

She blew out a small breath through her lips as she leaned into him, trying to give him the comfort he needed.

"Maybe he did, maybe he didn't. Does it matter now? We still won and I am still here by your side like I always will be Johnny with our family. Our entire family we are still together and all alive. And that's what counts here so maybe it's time to forgive because this distance between you two can't go on forever especially if it could get you killed."

She stepped even closer to him resting her lips on his shoulder before she continued.

"You have to realize John that sooner or later this separation won't be Oliver's fault any longer it will be yours because you can't move forward and that has consequences. And I distinctly remember that once being Oliver's problem and who helped him with that? You, John. You. Now let Oliver return the favor."

They sat for a few moments longer, Lyla not expecting an answer a he digested her words. But then he pulled away and with a touch to Sara's face and a kiss to Lyla's forehead he left the room.

But not before Lyla saw a new resolve in his eyes and she knew, this time, she had gotten through to him.

And that's all she ever asked for.

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 _Look! A thing I wrote! After so long. I've been in a bit of a writing rut so if you are reading my other story sorry for the lack of updates but I hope to have a couple new chapters up soon now_ _along with some one shots. I do take prompts! Tell me what you think! And yes Laura I used my theory. I'm awesome. I'm also thinking of starting some season 4 one shots collection but still not sure. Hope you liked it!_ _._


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